Share This Story!

Kaepernick's rise didn't surprise ex-teammate

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- What coach Jim Harbaugh made official Wednesday — Colin Kaepernick is the San Francisco 49ers' starting quarterback — was inevitable, according to one of Kaepernick's former teammates at

Posted!

Join the Nation's Conversation

Kaepernick's rise didn't surprise ex-teammate

Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports
2:05 p.m. EST November 29, 2012

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) looks to pass against the New Orleans Saints during the second half of a game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The 49ers defeated the Saints 31-21.(Photo: Derick E. Hingle, U.S. Presswire)

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- What coach Jim Harbaugh made official Wednesday — Colin Kaepernick is the San Francisco 49ers' starting quarterback — was inevitable, according to one of Kaepernick's former teammates at the University of Nevada.

He has seen it happen before.

"I already knew. I was thinking, 'Alex Smith better do what he's got to do to keep fighting,' because Kap is one of those guys who, once he got a hold of it, it was going to be hard to get it back," said Denver Broncos tight end Virgil Green, Kaepernick's teammate for five years in Reno. "He got his opportunity, and he's a guy who rises to the occasion."

Kaepernick was a redshirt freshman in 2007 when he replaced injured starter Nick Graziano in a game against Fresno State.

A week later, in his first college start, Kaepernick accounted for five touchdowns (three passing, two rushing) in Nevada's four-overtime 69-67 loss to Boise State. Kaepernick started every game for the rest of his college career, and Graziano transferred a year later.

"That was the game that made Colin Kaepernick," Green said.

In the seasons that followed, Green watched Kaepernick grow from a skinny kid who was "always throwing heat" to a mature and accurate passer. In their final regular-season game together, Green said Kaepernick rallied his teammates with a stirring speech at halftime against undefeated Boise State.

"He just tells us, 'If you don't think we can come back, you all can stay in the locker room, but we're going to make a run for this thing,'" he said.